@Paulo22 Upvoted. Video definition is too weak to read licence plates on most Tapo camera models, that's why I suggested to Tapo to include optical zoom on their models (10X optical zoom should be fine). Numeric zoom are not enough to get a clear vision of a person face or a licence plate past 10 yards.

Example :distance camera to licence plate : 13 meters. Result : unreadable.

Hi Cych, Yes optical zoom is good for static objects and for distant objects. However the rate at which a moving car traverses the video frame is critical to readability - so a long lens is worse as it'll only take a second for the plate to go from one side of the frame to the other - crossing pixels very fast. That is why for plate readability a wide angle is best and at an angle near to a head-on view as possible. Plates move slowly when coming directly towards camera. That is what I have got - a good position, and 2K resolution is fine but compression is the factor that fails.

  @Paulo22 

Hello,
Welcome to the community, and thank you for taking the time to share such a detailed explanation of your setup and observations.

We appreciate the thorough testing you’ve done and understand the situation you’re encountering. It’s important to clarify that Tapo cameras are primarily designed for home and general property monitoring scenarios, and they are not specifically optimized for dedicated road traffic monitoring or license plate recognition, especially in daytime conditions involving fast‑moving vehicles, complex backgrounds (such as foliage), and strict requirements for shutter speed, bitrate, and compression control.

Advanced controls such as manual shutter speed, gain adjustment, selectable constant bitrate, or fine‑grained compression tuning are typically available in more professional or enterprise‑grade camera systems, rather than consumer‑focused smart home cameras.

Given your requirements, you may wish to review our VIGI product line, which is designed for more professional surveillance use cases and includes models that support optical zoom, a feature that can be particularly helpful in scenarios such as traffic or license plate monitoring.

For reference only, you may consider looking at models such as:
VIGI InSight LPR345Z,  which supports 5× optical zoom

VIGI C540V, which supports 3× optical zoom

These types of VIGI cameras offer capabilities that are generally more suitable for scenarios where identifying details at a distance is important. We recommend paying close attention to specifications such as optical zoom, sensor characteristics, and identification distance to determine whether they align with your requirements.

You’re welcome to start a discussion in the VIGI section of the TP‑Link Community or contact the VIGI support team directly for more detailed guidance on product capabilities and suitability.

Best Regars.
 

  @Hilbert-TP thanks for replying. 
 

The specific flaws of Tapo cameras is the poorly designed use if large sensors with inappropriate bitrates and compression. In domestic environments it is pointless having a 2K sensor if the bit rate is incorrectly set by design.  Tapo are inadequate for recording moving subjects in normal domestic scenes. Tapo compromised the design for playback.  This is illogical as we can live with blocky, blurred live or playback pictures as long as the SD recordings are not compressed. 
 

you may say that it will fill the SD card too quickly. I think ALL users would say that they want quality images rather than space efficiency. 
 

All my cameras, no matter where they are used, suffer from blocky pictures.  
 

After 4 years of complaints you can't offer a fix. I will return them. 

  @Hilbert-TP Hi, I still think Tapo should offer/developp a true 6/8X optical zoom (sweet spot) equiped wifi model for the general public.

I initially bought Tapo products for their alarm/detectors products line, but I feel a bit limited for the camera offer.

There is already mainstream general public cameras offering optical zoom without entering the professional world. Ctronics & Reolink for example are brands offering such Wifi outdoor PTZ optical zoom (x30 & x16 respectively). I'm sure Tapo could offer at least one model. Something that we could program to zoom in at a precise magnification while detecting/tracking a movement. The Tapo C830 Eagle Eye 8X.

Being able to report suspicious lice ce plates to the police in case something happens is really a must.